Chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Ecology, Dr. Bukola Saraki must be prosecuted over the deaths and injuries that occurred in a recent stampede in his family house at Ilofa in Ilorin, Kwara State while he was distributing Sallah gifts to the poor.
According to members of the Ilorin Emirate Elders of Thought who petitioned the Kwara State Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice
through their counsel, Mr. Muritala Sambo of Murtala Sambo and Co., a criminal trial should be immediately commenced against Saraki, considering that this was not the first time people will die in similar circumstances.
“We have the instructions of our clients to demand the immediate commencement of criminal trial of Sen. Bukola Saraki over the avoidable gruesome murder of over 50 of our client’s kinsmen on Wednesday 17th October 2013 at the private residence of the Senator along Ilofa Road in Ilorin”, a part of the petition stated.
“Our clients are alarmed, as thousands other publicly spirited Nigerians, by the cruelty and (alleged) raw insensitivity of Sen. Saraki and his cronies in the Peoples Democratic party to the victims of the avoidable stampede that occurred at the ‘Charity House’ along Ilofa Road in Ilorin.
“They are therefore, by virtue of their pre-eminence in the community, interested in the prosecution of such a criminal suspect(s) for murder, conspiracy to murder, manslaughter and grievous bodily injury (as the case may be) with the hope that such a decisive action will deter a recurrence of such in the future”.
Many people, mostly members of the Kwara State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), died on the day of the stampede while scrambling for handouts distributed by the former governor of the state.
“The Peoples Democratic Party Kwara State chapter held its annual Sallah celebration at PDP Charity House where many party faithful were in attendance”, Publicity Secretary of Kwara PDP, Mas’ud Adebimpe confirmed later in a release.
“The event which is an annual activity of the party went on smoothly until the unfortunate incident of a stampede, which led to some people fainting. They were immediately rushed to a hospital few blocks away from the venue.
“While some are currently responding positively to treatment, we however regret to announce that we lost four of our party members to the unfortunate development. Our prayers go out to the families of the deceased and we pray for the quick recovery of those that are responding fast to treatment”.
Meanwhile, the legacies of the late Second Republic Senate Leader and strongman of Kwara politics, Dr. Olusola Saraki, have been extolled.
Speaking during the one-year anniversary of his death, dignitaries in attendance recalled his roles in democracy, human capital development, capacity building and provision of infrastructure in Kwara State.
In attendance were the likes of Africa’s richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote; former acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Kawu Baraje; and court-reinstated National Secretary of PDP, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola.
Also present were Governor of Kano State, Alhaji Rabiu Kwankwaso; former governors of Kebbi Nasarawa and Gombe states, Alhaji Adamu Aliero, Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu and Senator Danjuma Goje; Governor of Kwara State, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed; Danmasani Kano, Alhaji Maitama Sule; former Minister of Aviation, Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode; Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari and many other traditional rulers.
